Wire-fence machine.



No. 655,760. Patented Aug. I4, I900. THEODORE M. BONNER & THOMPSON M. GDNNER. WIRE FENGEMAGHINE.

-(App1icatim filed Jan. 6, 1900. (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet l.

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No. 655,760. Patented Aug. [4, I900. THEODORE M. CONNER & THOMPSON M. BONNER. WIRE FENCE MACHINE.

(No Model.) (Application filed Jan. 8, 1900.) V 3 sheets shaet 2- I 4 17 93 26.2.5 "I. y f H 4' .1 u. 22 IO- n) u- 2, l 6 :5 g l) H I J0 z/ 7 1' 3 1 1; i 32. z! 14: ,mn I All v a .!s-... 1w I 5 v 8 'Theoobremcannejj Patented Aug. l4, I900. THEODORE m. conmzn .& THOMPSON m. comuzn.

WIRE FENCE MACHINE.

(Application filed Jan. 8, 1900.) Modem 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

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THEODORE M. OONNER AND THOMPSON M. OONNER, OF VVABASII, INDIANA.

WIRE-FENCE MACHINE.

v SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 655,760, dated August 14, 1900. Application filed January 8, 1900. Serial No. 729. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, THEODORE M. CONNER and THOMPSON M. CONNER, citizens of the United States, residing'at 'Wabash, in the county of Wabash and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wire-Fence Machines, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to that class of fencemaking machines which are designed to be used in the field for weaving fence from wire in place, especially that variety in which the frames carrying the spools which carry the woof-wires are carried upon and rotated by a series of gear-driven disks and are shifted from certain of said disks to certain other of said disks after certain equal numbers of revolutions, whereby what is known as a Fdiamond-mesh fence is produced.

A machine embodying our said invention will be first fully described and the novel features thereof then pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are made a part hereof, and on which similar reference characters indicate similar parts, Figure his a side elevation of a machine embodying our said invention in position for use as it appears when atwork making fence, the immediately-adjacent portions of a section of such fence being also'used for clearness of illustration; Fig. 2, a horizontal sectional view, on an enlarged scale, of those portions seen when looking downwardly from the dotted line 2 2 in Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a front elevation of the upper portion of the machine, a part of the mechanism being removed to show the construction below; Fig. 4, a detail sectional view on the dotted line 4 at in Fig. 3; Fig. 5, a detail view looking outwardly from the dotted line 5 5 in Fig. 4; Figs. 6 and 7, detail sectional views as seen from the dotted lines 6 Band 7 7 in Fig. 5, respectively; Fig. 8, a detail sectional view on the dotted line 8 8 in Fig. 7; Fig. 9, a side elevation of the winding-drum mechanism as seen from the dotted line 9 9 in Fig. 2; and Fig. 10 a detail sectional view looking downwardly from the dotted line 10 10 in Fig. 9.

The frame consists of an upright 1, mounted on a base 2, which is supported by carrying-wheels 3, and said base and said upright are further connected and held in proper relative position by diagonally-positioned bars 4:, which in turn are stiffened by braces 5, extending therefrom to the uprights 1, allas shown in Fig. 1. Suitably secured to the up right 1 arebearingplates 6, within which hollow shafts 7 are mounted. Upon these shafts 7 are mounted the disks for driving the spoolcarrying frames, said disks being each composed of an outer plate 8 and an inner plate 9, the latter of which carries mechanism operated by cam-sufaces on plates attached to or forming part of the bearings 6 for gripping and releasing the spool carrying frames, whereby, after a certain number of rotations said spool-carrying frames are transferred from one to another of the rotary'holdingdisks. V,

The spool carrying frames are substantially U-shaped in form, and the outer ends of the arms 25, which carry the spools 26, are connected by annular guiding-rings 27, by which the woof-wires are properly guided to position, as shown in Fig. 1. The base 28 of said spool-carrying frames is flat and adapted to pass between the plates 8 and 9 and contains depressions into which the ends of suitable locking-levers may beforced, whereby each frame in turn is locked to one or another of the rotating disks. In Fig. 4. the spoolcarrying frame is shown as locked to the lower driving-disk, the leverof which enters the depression in the base of said frame, while it is free to pass through the opening between the two plates of the upper disk, the locking lever in said upper disk being shown as retracted and shown as not engaging with the cavity in the base of said spool'carrying frame. Returning now to the disks for carrying the spool-carrying frames, these, as above stated,

are mounted on hollow shafts 7, which are fixedly secured in the frame 1, and around which said disks are adapted to rotate. The disk 9 is shown as composed of two parts, the main part being practically a simple spur gear-wheel, while the other is in the form of a plate 10, having cars 11, containing bearings for the cams 12 and 13, and smaller ears 14, containing bearings for hinged locking-1e vers 15 and 16, which are operated by said cams. (See Figs. 4, 5, and 8.)

The cams are operated at predetermined periods of time by cam-tracks 17 and 18 on the bearing-plates 6, each of which has a notch which engages with one tooth of a starwheel attached to or formed integrally with the corresponding cam 12 or 13. As shown in Figs. 5, 6, and 7, the cams are substantially alike except that in one case the star-wheel 19 is nearest the periphery of the plate 10 and in the other case the star-wheel 20 is on the side nearest the center of said plate, which arrangement brings said star-Wheels into proper registry with the tracks 17 and 18, respectively.

In operation, at each revolution of the disks driven by the train of gear-wheels, one arm of each of the star-wheels 19 and 20 engages in a notch in its track, and is thus revolved (in the arrangement shown) one fourth of a turn. The two lowermost arms of the starwheel during the remainder of the revolution ride on top of the corresponding track and prevent any further rotation. During a portion of the rotations the smallest parts of the cam-wheels 12 and 13 are in contact with the levers 15 and 16, and during such part of said rotations the engaging points of said levers are out of operative engagement with the spool-carrying frames. When, however, said cams have been rotated sufficiently so that the larger faces thereof come in contact with said levers, they are forced inwardly, and the points engage with the holes or depressions in the bases of the spool-carrying frames and grip them tightly in place. The mechanism is so timed as that the levers in one set of disks become released at the same instant that they are thrown into engagement with the adjacent sets. The consequence is that said spool-carrying frames and the spools carried thereby are transferred back and forth to and from the various disks, and the arrangement is further of such a character that each alternate disk carries two spool-carryin g frames at one time, while the intermediate disks are idle, those disks which revolve in one direction being all loaded at one time, and those which revolve in the other direction being all loaded at another time, so that the twisting of the Wire is first in one direction and then, when shifted, is in the other direction, as, of course, as in all straight trains of spur-gears, one-half the gears rotate in one direction and one-half in the other.

Within each of the hollow shafts 7 we place loosely-mounted sleeves 21, through which the main fence-wires W pass. These sleeves are confined in place by heads or collars 22 and 23, one of which is removable to facilitate inserting and removing the sleeves. Said sleeves extend out and their points or extreme ends pass between the guiding-rings 27 on the outer ends of the arms of the spoolcarrying frames, and thus serve to protect the wires W from contact with said annular rings, which otherwise would frequently during the operation of the machine impinge thereon and perhaps cut the wires, as well as multiply friction, and consequently increase the power required to operate the machine. These sleeves or spindles being loosely mounted and entirely free to rotate serve as autifriction-rollers as the rings 27 revolve, over which said rings will easily pass at that point in their travel where they approach most nearly to each other.

The train of gears formed, either in fact or in effect, integrally with the plates 9 is driven by a crank 30 on a shaft 31, mounted in suitable bearing-supports 32 on the main frame 1 by means of bevel gear-wheels 34 35, one of which may be formed integrally with one of the spungears 9 and the other with said crankshaft 31, if desired, as shown.

The same crank-shaft which drives the train of gears through which the spool-carry ing frames are operated also drives a mechanism by which the machine is regularly and automatically shifted along from point to point as each mesh of the woven-wire fence being made is completed.

A winding-drum is mounted in suitable bearings carried upon the diagonal framepieces 4, and upon this drum is a draft-wire D, which is attached at the other end to a post P of the frame or to some other suitable fixed structure. This winding-drum 40 has a sprocket-wheel 41 mounted thereon, which is driven by asprocket-chain 42, runningfrom another sprocket-wheel 43 on the crankshaft. Manifestly, however, the rotation of this spool must be intermittent and must only occur when one set of meshes in the fence has been completed and while the spool-carrying frames are being shifted for the purpose of making the next set of meshes. The sprocket-wheel 41 is therefore loosely mounted on the shaft of the winding-drum 40, but is adapted to be locked thereto, and thus drive the same at a proper point in the operation. As it is desired to wrap the w0of-wires several times about the warp-Wires the sprocketwheel 41 is made several times as large as the sprocket-wheel 43, so that said sprocketwheel 43, the crank-shaft, and the other parts may revolve the proper number of times to each revolution of the sprocket-wheel 41. A suitable ratchet 44 is secured upon oneend of the winding-drum 40,and alever-latch 45,pivoted to the sprocket-wheel 41, is arranged to engage therewith. A spring 46 is provided for the purpose of keeping said lever-latch into engagement when not forcibly removed therefrom. As, however, it is not desired that said latch shall be in engagement for more than the time necessary to properly move the machine, a cam 47 is provided upon the stationary bearing-plate 48, in which the shaft for this Windingdrum is mounted, with which as the sprocket-wheel 41 revolves the outer end of the lever-latch 45 will come in contact, as is clearly indicated in Fig. 2, with the result that said lever-latch is disengaged from the ratchet 44 and the sprocket-wheel is permitted to revolve a considerable portion of the time free from engagement of the winding- ICO IIO

drum, which is thus permitted to remain at rest. This cam 47 is capable of being adjusted accurately to position,1.being secured to the plate 48 by means of a belt I) and a wing-nut n, the bolt passing througha curved slot in the plate 48, as best shown in Fig. 1. By this means the size of the mesh in the fence is rendered adjustable to such size as may be predetermined. Upon the opposite end of the winding-drum is another ratchet 49, with which a detent 50 is adapted to engage, which detent holds the winding-drum to the position to which it has been wound when the latch-lever is disengaged therefrom, thus preventing anyretrogression on the part of the machine.

Having thus fully described our said invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. The combination, in a wire-fence machine, of aseries of disks geared together and revolving simultaneously, the alternate gears revolving in opposite directions, spool-carrying frames adapted to be transferred from certain of these disks to certain other of said disks, mechanism for locking and releasing said spool-carrying frames composed of locking-levers pivoted to one member of said disks, the locking-points whereof are adapt ed to enter suitable depressions in the bases of said spool carrying frames, cams also mounted on said disk parts for operating said locking-levers, and cam-tracks secured to the frame of the machineforactuatingsaid cams, said tracks being provided with notches, and said cams being provided with star-wheels the arms whereof are adapted at intervals to enter said notches, whereby said cams are retated from time to time and the locking-levers thus actuated, substantiallyas set forth.

2. The combination, in a wire-fence machine, of spools carrying the woof -wires, frames for carrying said spools, having disklike bases, revoluble disks each composed of two members between the edges whereof the edges of said disklike f ram e-bases are adapt ed to enter, locking-levers mounted on one member of said disks, cams also mounted on said disk members, and cam-tracks mounted on the frame and adapted to actuate said cams, whereby at predetermined periods the said spool-carrying frames are locked and at other predetermined periods released, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

8. The combination, in a wire-fence machine, with the spool-carrier frames, of mechanism for holding and carrying said frames and transferring them back and forth from one revolving mechanism to another, said mechanism being composed of double disks between which the disk-like bases of the spoolcarrier frames enter, locking-levers thereon, cams for operating said levers, and camtracks for operating said cams, the adjacent sets of mechanisms being arranged to grip and release said spool-carrier frames alternatively, whereby said spool-carrier frames are at a predetermined instant transferred from certain of said disks to the adjacent disks, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

4. The combination, in a wire-fence machine, with the mechanisms for operating the spool-carriers carrying the woof-wires, of a mechanism driven from the same shaft for shifting the position of the machine as each mesh of fence is completed, said shifting mechanism being composed of a winding drum the wire whereon runs to a fixed point, and a clutch mechanism whereby said winding-drum is automatically driven and permitted to remain at rest, the shifting cam of said mechanism being so positioned as that the shifting takes place when the individual meshes of the fence are completed, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination, in a wire-fence machine, with the mechanism for weaving the fence, of a mechanism for automatically shifting the position of the machine from time to time composed of a winding-drum having a ratchet thereon, a latch-lever for engaging with said ratchet, a spring for forcing said latch-lever inwardly when not forcibly drawn out, and a cam on an adjacent fixed part arranged in the path of said locking-lever whereby the same is retracted and held out of engagement during a portion of the revolution, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination, in a wire-fence machine, with the mechanism for weaving the fence, of a mechanism for automatically shifting the position of the machine from time to time composed of a winding-drum having a ratchet thereon, a latch-lever for engaging with said ratchet, a spring for forcing said latch-lever inwardly when not forcibly drawn out, a cam on an adjacent fixed part arranged in the path of said locking-lever, and means for adjusting said cam to the desired position in said path, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

7. The combination, in a wire-fence machine, of the hollow shafts upon which the mechanism for manipulating the wires is mounted, spool-carrying frames mounted intermediately of said hollow shafts and provided with guide rings at the outer end whereby the wires from the spools carried by said frame are guided, and hollow sleeves loosely mounted in said hollow shafts and extending out between said guide-rings and through which the main fence-wires pass, whereby said main fence-wires are protected from contact with said rings and the other elements of the operating mechanism.

In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands and seals, at Wabash, Indiana, this 5th day of January, 1900.

THEODORE M. OONNER. [L. s.

THOMPSON M. OONNER. L. s. WVitnesses:

J NO. W. KRUEGER,

E. M. ToLAN 

